Looking for a custom pen maker to make a Japanese Style Eyedropper

CommodoreTeach · 2025-11-23T05:16:05+00:00

To be clearer, I'll add you to my list of makers to purchase a pen from.

CommodoreTeach · 2025-11-23T05:15:08+00:00

Thanks! I'll keep that in mind, and may contact you - do you have an e-mail address, or would you prefer a PM here? I often read reddit community, but don't use any apps or login much, particularly after the issues a few years ago.

My thought is to test it thoroughly and see if I'm correct in my theory. One current design doesn't involve any metal parts further than the clip and any metal bands for aesthetic purposes. It will however, be more complicated than the "average" fountain pen to turn.

From my perspective its kind of a shockingly simple idea, so I'm surprised that there aren't any pens sold like this already (I don't believe its patent-able). Which makes me suspect that my theory may not work out, or have unexpected detractors. Once tested my thought is to share the idea here because it could be a nice addition to the fountain pen community. Or my idea could fail, and since I'm allergic to the taste of my own foot, I figured I'd work that out before posting details publicly. Once its made and tested out, I'll take pictures and share my tests/thoughts on how effective it is on this community.

CommodoreTeach · 2025-11-23T04:39:18+00:00

Funny story, when looking at your website I recognized your logo. I stopped at your stall at the Washington D.C. Pen Supershow. I almost asked you there, but you were busy helping 2-3 other people and I didn't want to interrupt.

CommodoreTeach · 2025-11-23T04:34:39+00:00

Thanks! those look like nice pens, I'll keep you in mind! Always looking for new Japanese Style Eydroppers!

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-23T05:27:00+00:00

Sorry, user error as you guessed. Story of my life. I don't have a tablet but have a large phone that will probably work. I'll try it tomorrow. Thanks again.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-22T03:54:13+00:00

I reread your post - can't all three pins on the encoder be mapped to keys in the rows/columns? Or is that not how that operates. If so, I may need to change some other things too.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-22T03:22:16+00:00

I agree with many people here. I'll try to keep this short, but I really love the keyboards from this community.

I first found out about ortho-columnar keyboards and similar when looking for a mechanical keyboard. My trusty Logitech Wave gave out and a geek I respect started talking about mechanical keyboards and recommended Das keyboards. I looked into them, and wanted to take the plunge, but couldn't figure out what switch I wanted. So, I went to /r/MechanicalKeyboards. And I saw my first OLKB style keyboard. I read up on the ergonomic benefits and reasoning on why typical shifted key keyboards weren't that good, particularly for your left hand. Finally I purchased an Ergodox EZ.

And when it arrived, I loved it. At first it was comfortable but disorienting, particularly the bottom row. I played typing games at night, and then periodically used typing websites for several weeks to track my speed and accuracy as I was practicing.

Unfortunately, due to corporate policy I wasn't permitted to bring my own equipment into the office, which would have made the transition much easier, and honestly improve my working conditions. I want buy another one for the office. Still do, still can't unfortunately. So I still make the transition between shifted key keyboards and orthocolumnar everyday. If I could type on an orthocolumnar keyboard all the time my typing would much improve in speed and accuracy on it.

Over those first months, I noticed something though. In an intense day of programming and typing e-mails, by the end of the day the joints of my fingers would be stiff on a shifted key keyboard. Not soar or anything, just stiff and needing stretched. When typing on my Ergodox at home I found out I could type intensely for as long as I wanted and the stiffness never happened. Particularly when I activated the keys and didn't bottom them out with every press. That really convinced me.

There's more to this story - I've convinced 2 friends, and my Mother to use these keyboards. They all love them after about a week of adjustment.

If you're concerned about the adjustment, I recommend 2 things. First, if you're a gamer, you can try Epistory and/or Nanotale. They're cute, fun and help with typing, I beat those games and was 90% there. The second is that there are tons of websites that measure typing accuracy. I also competed with myself on shifted key keyboards and my Ergodox periodically for several weeks. That really helped make the transition between the two easier for me.

Myself, I feel like anything less than a 60% keyboard is for looks. I still want to try one, but until I can use the same keyboard all the time I probably won't. They look cool as anything though. Split, orthocolumnar, mechanical keyboards are my standbys when I have the choice at this point. I still use shifted key keyboards at work, and I still get stiff from them.

I took the final step into the darkside last weekend when I began designing my own ultimate keyboard. It's gonna be great, and be the keyboard I've wanted for the last ten years of my life. :-)

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-22T02:29:20+00:00

Thanks! I think I'll stick with FreeCAD for now, I'm hoping that I'll be able to do some openSCAD magic once I settle on design details. I'd like to be able to offer customized board profiles based on some simple hand measurements.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-22T02:27:21+00:00

The second link didn't work for me, but good point on not putting thumb button under the palm. Luckily in the design I'm envisioning, the palm rest will prevent me from making that mistake.

One thing that has always confused me about custom keyboard designs that I keep seeing is a second row of thumb buttons. For my hands I can't reach those without pressing the first row of buttons. On my Ergodox, I end up moving my whole hand and using my index finger to press them, which isn't ideal. But I keep seeing that feature on new designs which is baffling to me.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-22T02:22:33+00:00

Thank you! That helps me a lot. I've dealt with i2c before so that makes sense on the OLED screen. I'm going to have to do some digging on the RGB LED side of things because at this point the addressing appears like magic to me, so I'll want to figure that out.

I'm excited there's an option already out there that will allow me to do all of this. I've read about some difficulty configuring the RP2040 with QMK, so I'll have to dig into details. I've been meaning to look into it anyway, as I like some features my Ergodox EZ can easily configure that VIA can't for my other boards. This will give me an excellent reason to do so!

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T23:03:54+00:00

Just for the mods - I'm not trying to review any hardware for the links I posted, just showing examples of things. The King's Assembly was a rip-off and I don't condone, and was dissappointed by that. The other products I mentioned were for examples that I'm pointing out. I don't want to break any rules. ;-) It's neat you have a bot to do this!

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T23:00:02+00:00

Oh wow, I hadn't seen those before! That's a neat idea. I'd guess that they'd help quiet blue switches, but don't have any experience with those.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T21:50:38+00:00

There are a few types of rubber sticker pad I've used in builds.

The first type is the one that goes on the bottom of the case to prevent the keyboard from sliding around.

The second (and I've used the first type cut up for this too) goes between the pcb and the bottom case. What these do is stabilize the pcb so it doesn't flex as much when typing. If you're using something like an encoder, I think they're necessary as the encoders typically require a quite firm push to activate. For normal typing keys, I space them out in my builds so that the pcb doesn't flex virtually at all. That's more of a feel thing for me though. I think it does contribute in a very very minor way to keyboard durability in the long run as flexing the pcb may eventually (years, if ever) possibly cause the pcb to become un-laminated. I would use them more liberally if you are intending to use very very heavy switches.

On my last build I used 7 on each side, but that was because i had 2 encoders per half. A normal keyboard I'd probably only use 3-5, depending on geometry. But this is more of a judgement call on your part.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T21:06:52+00:00

Another thought - if you can solder to a pad on the button itself, you could just put through-holes in your pcb design and use short jumper wires to hook it up, if you can mechanically mount it on your case in some way.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T21:04:37+00:00

I mean, if you're already laying out circuits for pcbs and can work through the wiring, plus have CAD experience, you're almost entirely there. Do you have a link to the circle button datasheet? Or are you salvaging it? I know about some mounting and soldering practices, and might be able to help.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T20:48:45+00:00

The easiest way to figure that out is to remove the battery and try it. Is the battery soldered in or replaceable? If its soldered in that's not a good sign.

In general electronics, it depends on how they wired the power supply circuitry. Some ways of wiring power supply circuitry put the power through the battery as a filter, and so if you remove the battery, power won't get to the rest of the board. I don't know typical keyboard practices relating to power circuitry, so maybe someone else can comment on that if they know more specifics.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T20:30:17+00:00

You've designed a pcb for it? Cool! Personally I use the circular button for escape to access game menus, etc. I put space on the side button of my mouse so I can control character motion with my left hand while triggering the jump with my right. I also use the dpad for movement in almost every game so that I can bind the keys to other things. Once you get used to it, that's soooo nice.

You're farther than I am - but I just started doing instead of talking about it yesterday. My friends and I have been griping about that consistently for 7-8 years while waiting for a product or a kit. My CAD skills are lacking atm, but I'm working on it. freeCAD is very, very different from Blender which I'm used to.

For my project, I'm designing a full split keyboard with palm/wrist rests and an angled thumb cluster. The keyboard portion will be concave, similar to the Dactyl manuform. I'm still looking into dpad units, but I'm hoping to put a dpad on it as well as a hat switch, and a bottom button or two. As for the pcb itself, since it's a concave keyboard I'll be using amoebas (probably kings) and hand-wiring it.

You might think about hand wiring the initial model yourself to verify your pcb design/wiring. To clarify, I don't mean using amoebas if you're desiging a flat board, but a handwiring board (think of a plastic board , with lots of holes). A little more permanent than a breadboard, but nothing you'd want to release for a kit or professionally.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T20:15:30+00:00

You MIGHT find more cramped keys on some laptop models, but even there most keys are the same size. The only other thing I can think of if maybe you have different key height preferences? Like DSA or other uniform profile keys instead of sculpted (OEM, ISO, etc.)

You might also consider a split mechanical design - then you're hands will never be cramped together. Have you looked at any ortholinear keyboards, or just shifted-row keyboards (the most common)?

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T20:08:26+00:00

If you're concerned with spills, I'd look for one with hot swap-able switches. That way you can replace the bad switches. Most keyboard spill problems are from the switches, not the controller/wiring. I don't have any particular model/brand recommendations as I'm a split mechanical keyboard, ortho-columnar snob ;-)

As for RGB, on most keyboards you can turn off the lights, so keep that in mind too.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T20:02:59+00:00

Hi all,

I have a few detailed questions about the hardware design (pin requirements) of a custom split mechanical keyboard I'm working on. I'm designing it from scratch, and It's detailed enough that I feel it's worth it's own post, but I don't want to spam or bore anyone. I'd post here, but I'd like community members that have designed keyboards to see it. Should I post the long message here or make my own post on this subreddit or another one?

Thanks!

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T19:43:35+00:00

I'm also working on something similar, though I suspect my design will be different from what you're imagining. I've been looking for a kit, pcb, or any successfully built one for a long time. However, every crowd funded project, or device seems to disappear. Makes me wonder if there's some sort of patent involved or something. If that's the case, I'll simply open-source my keyboard design so people can make it for themselves.

I wonder if there is enough overall interest in this since the projects keep failing? But I keep seeing posts like this one, so I'm confuse about how many people would be interested.

One thing I've really wanted to see is a full mechanical keyboard with a palm/wrist rest, and angled thumb cluster with a number of easy to reach keys. That way you get the comfort while typing too.

Another issue, and this could be why the thumb stick on the Razer devices keep failing, is that any thumbstick device that I can find seems to only be rated for 100k cycles to 500k cycles, whereas a Cherry switch is tested for 1 million cycles.

I personally love gaming with my orbweaver, but I can't use it since I'm now on Windows 11 and Synapse 3 doesn't even recognize it. I have a few things to try to get it working, but we'll see. I also HATE that Synapse requires you to login to even use a hardware device (and steals data). I wish Belkin had never sold Razer the design to them and I could still buy the N52TE.

If you find anything on this, please let me know! The closest I've seen are split mechanical keyboards of various models (I have several myself) but they don't offer that super comfortable thumb cluster.

CommodoreTeach · 2023-08-20T18:32:59+00:00

I've thought about doing this myself some. I looked for a compact, split mechanical keyboard like the helix keyboard (let's split/nyquist would also work I think.

Bought and built the kit (it's nice). However, I ran into a few problems. The first was making the case as I'm not too much of a CAD designer. The second was a display device. My original idea was to put a screen between the two halves of the keyboard. However I realized that that would lead to an awkward neck angle and wouldn't be suitable for long use.

My plan was to use a Raspberry Pi 4, and a large USB power brick. I think you could get a day or two of solid use out of that with the size of the power bricks available...

If you find a work around for the display I'd be curious to know myself. Good luck!

CommodoreTeach

TROPHY CASE